A Plea for Repentance

1 In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius,^(A) the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah^(B) son of Berechiah, son of Iddo: ² “The Lord was extremely angry with your ancestors.^{(C) 3} So tell the people, ‘This is what the Lord of Armies says: Return to me—this is the declaration of the Lord of Armies—and I will return to you, says the Lord of Armies.^{(D) 4} Do not be like your ancestors;^(E) the earlier prophets proclaimed to them:^(F) This is what the Lord of Armies says: Turn from your evil ways and your evil deeds.^(G) But they did not listen or pay attention to me—this is the Lord’s declaration. ⁵ Where are your ancestors now? And do the prophets live forever? ⁶ But didn’t my words and my statutes that I commanded my servants the prophets overtake your ancestors?’”

So the people repented and said, “As the Lord of Armies decided to deal with us for our ways and our deeds, so he has dealt with us.”^(H)

The Night Visions

⁷ On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month of Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berechiah, son of Iddo:

First Vision: Horsemen

⁸ I looked out in the night and saw a man riding on a chestnut^[a] horse.^(I) He was standing among the myrtle trees in the valley.^[b] Behind him were chestnut, brown, and white horses. ⁹ I asked, “What are these, my lord?”

The angel who was talking to me replied, “I will show you what they are.”

¹⁰ Then the man standing among the myrtle trees explained, “They are the ones the Lord has sent to patrol the earth.”

¹¹ They reported to the angel of the Lord standing among the myrtle trees, “We have patrolled the earth, and right now the whole earth is calm and quiet.”^(J)

¹² Then the angel of the Lord responded, “How long, Lord of Armies, will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah that you have been angry with these seventy years?” ^{(K) 13} The Lord replied with kind and comforting words to the angel who was speaking with me.

¹⁴ So the angel who was speaking with me said, “Proclaim: The Lord of Armies says: I am extremely jealous^(L) for Jerusalem and Zion. ¹⁵ I am fiercely angry with the nations that are at ease,^(M) for I was a little angry, but they made the destruction worse.^{[c] 16} Therefore, this is what the Lord says: In mercy, I have returned to Jerusalem; my house will be rebuilt within it—this is the declaration of the Lord of Armies—and a measuring line will be stretched out over Jerusalem.^(N)

¹⁷ “Proclaim further: This is what the Lord of Armies says: My cities will again overflow with prosperity; the Lord will once more comfort Zion and again choose Jerusalem.”^(O)

Second Vision: Four Horns and Craftsmen

¹⁸ Then I looked up and saw four horns.^{(P) 19} So I asked the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these?”

And he said to me, “These are the horns that scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”

²⁰ Then the Lord showed me four craftsmen. ²¹ I asked, “What are they coming to do?”

He replied, “These are the horns that scattered Judah so no one could raise his head. These craftsmen have come to terrify them, to cut off^[d] the horns of the nations that raised a horn against the land of Judah to scatter it.”

Third Vision: Surveyor

2 I looked up and saw a man with a measuring line in his hand. ² I asked, “Where are you going?”

He answered me, “To measure Jerusalem to determine its width and length.”

³ Then the angel who was speaking with me went out, and another angel went out to meet him. ⁴ He said to him, “Run and tell this young man: Jerusalem will be inhabited without walls because of the number of people and animals in it.”^{(Q) 5} The declaration of the Lord: “I myself will be a wall^(R) of fire around it, and I will be the glory within it.”

⁶ “Listen! Listen! Flee from the land of the north”^(S)—this is the Lord’s declaration—“for I have scattered you like the four winds of heaven”—this is the Lord’s declaration. ⁷ “Listen, Zion! Escape, you who are living with Daughter Babylon.” ⁸ For the Lord of Armies says this: “In pursuit of his glory, he sent me against the nations plundering you, for whoever touches you touches the pupil^[e] of my^[f] eye. ⁹ For look, I am raising my hand against them, and they will become plunder for their own servants.^(T) Then you will know that the Lord of Armies has sent me.

¹⁰ “Daughter Zion, shout for joy and be glad, for I am coming to dwell among you”—this is the Lord’s declaration. ¹¹ “Many nations will join themselves to the Lord on that day and become my^[g] people.^(U) I will dwell among you, and you will know that the Lord of Armies has sent me to you. ¹² The Lord will take possession of Judah as his portion in the Holy Land, and he will once again choose Jerusalem.^{(V) 13} Let all humanity be silent^(W) before the Lord, for from his holy dwelling he has roused himself.”

13 And I saw a beast coming up out of the sea.^(A) It had ten horns and seven heads. On its horns were ten crowns,^[a](B) and on its heads were blasphemous names.^{[b](C) 2} The beast I saw was like a leopard, its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth.^(D) The dragon gave the beast his power, his throne, and great authority. ³ One of its heads appeared to be fatally wounded, but its fatal wound was healed.

The whole earth was amazed and followed the beast.^{(E) 4} They worshiped the dragon^(F) because he gave authority to the beast. And they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast?^(G) Who is able to wage war against it?”

⁵ The beast was given a mouth to utter boasts and blasphemies.^(H) It was allowed to exercise authority^[c][d] for forty-two months.^{(I) 6} It began to speak^[e] blasphemies against God: to blaspheme his name and his dwelling—those who dwell in heaven. ⁷ And it was permitted to wage war against the saints and to conquer them.^(J) It was also given authority^(K) over every tribe, people, language, and nation.^{(L) 8} All those who live on the earth will worship it, everyone whose name was not written from the foundation of the world in the book^[f] of life^(M) of the Lamb who was slaughtered.^[g](N)

⁹ If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen.^(O)

This calls for endurance^[i] and faithfulness from the saints.^(Q)

The Beast from the Earth

¹¹ Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth; it had two horns like a lamb,^[j](R) but it spoke like a dragon. ¹² It exercises all the authority of the first beast on its behalf and compels the earth and those who live on it to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound was healed. ¹³ It also performs great signs,^(S) even causing fire to come down from heaven to earth in front of people.^{(T) 14} It deceives those who live on the earth^(U) because of the signs that it is permitted to perform in the presence of the beast,^(V) telling those who live on the earth to make an image^[k] of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. ¹⁵ It was permitted to give breath^[l] to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast could both speak and cause whoever would not worship the image of the beast to be killed.^{(W) 16} And it makes everyone—small and great, rich and poor, free and slave—to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead,^{(X) 17} so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark: the beast’s name or the number of its name.

¹⁸ This calls for wisdom:^[m](Y) Let the one who has understanding calculate^[n] the number of the beast, because it is the number of a person. Its number is 666.^[o]

In Praise of a Wife of Noble Character